1. Field of the Invention
The invention may be classified in class 6 and appropriate sub-classes.
Our present invention relates generally to improvements in or relating to apiarian frames and, more particularly, to an improved frame assembly which is comprised of individual interconnectable frame components made of molded plastic.
Still more particularly, our invention relates to a molded plastic frame assembly comprised of individual components, which frame serves to collect royal jelly.
Three distinct phases can be observed in the life of a worker bee. In the first phase, or "nurse bee" phase, the bee helps with incubating the brood and with preparing the brood cells. This phase also includes feeding of the older larvae which receive a mixture of honey and pollen gathered by the foragers. After about three days, the special brood food glands in the head of the worker become active, and the young bee proceeds with feeding the younger larvae with a concentrated milky secretion from its glands, known as bee milk, brood food, or "royal jelly" because this plays an important role in the development of the queen bee.
Descriptions of royal jelly production may be had from "The ABC and XYZ of Bee Culture", published by the A. I. Root Company, Medina, Ohio; and from "The Beekeeper's Handbook", published by Peach Mountain Press Ltd., Dexter, Mich.
2. Prior Art
The prior art includes U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,426,551; 1,787,840; 2,335,044; 3,485,519; 3,758,896; 3,936,894; 4,186,458; 4,216,557; 4,234,985; 4,374,440; 4,403,358; and 4,453,281.
Previous devices for collecting royal jelly were fixed devices which required frequent scraping of excreted wax, often causing loss of royal jelly.
There has continued to remain interest in apiarian devices, and improvements in or relating to frames, e.g. foundation or honeycomb frames, have included the replacement of the conventional wooden frame structures by plastic frame structures comprised of individual interconnectable frame components.
However, there has continued to remain the need for improvements in bee frames comprised of plastic and interconnectable frame components, and which are particularly suited for the collection of royal jelly accumulated in the bee hive.